What Makes Democracy Work?
H.R.1, also called the For the People Act is currently going through the legislative process. News outlets of all persuasions are reporting and opining about it. What’s in it and what’s not and what effects it might have on the American voting process is hotly debated. Excerpts from news outlets and how their views and reporting styles differ can shed a bit of light on the opposing positions.
March 2nd:FOX News:
Republican Study Committee hits back at Democrats’ HR 1 election bill. HR 1 would create automatic voter registration, among other sweeping provisions.
“We are witnessing a crisis of confidence in our country’s most important and sacred institution: The democratic process,” the RSC said in a statement. “A crisis of this magnitude demands our nation’s leaders do something about it.” (RSC quote)
The alternative legislation [to H.R.1], the RSC’s Save Democracy Act, would prohibit automatic and same-day voter registration, require identification to vote via mail or in person, and would require states to audit ballot tabulation systems within 30 days of an election. The GOP proposal would also prohibit sending unrequested mail-in ballots and ban publicly-placed ballot drop boxes.
H.R. 1, on the other hand, seeks to expand mail-in voting, mandate same-day registration and create automatic nationwide voter registration. The bill would also allow felons who have completed their sentences to vote, expand early voting and enhance absentee voting by simplifying voting by mail.
March 4th, CNN Politics
House passes sweeping election bill that would counter GOP efforts to restrict voter access.
The Democratic-led House on Wednesday approved HR 1, a sweeping government, ethics and election bill that, among other things, would counter state-level Republican efforts to restrict voting access.
Democrats describe the package as anti-corruption legislation that would expand voting access and improve accountability and transparency in Washington.
Republicans, however, argue that the legislation limits political speech and represents an overreach and a federal power grab that Democrats are furthering to gain an advantage in elections. House Republicans have urged their members to vote against it.
As of February, republican state legislators in 43 states had introduced more than 250 bills with restrictive voting provisions, according to a tally from the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University.
Sources: FOX News / CNN News / Brennan Center for Justice /
